A prolonged absence could deny him the ability to cast a vote,
potentially depriving Democrats of the necessary 60.

It's not immediately clear how it will play out on this front,
but reformers ought to be feeling nervous.

As for Scott Brown, he's the subject of a POLITICO
piece this morning, regarding his evolution from an outsider to
the consummate Washington horse trader, having secured a special
change to the financial reform bill that particularly benefits a
pair of Mass.-based firms.

He even takes heat from a fellow GOPer:

Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) said Brown “is doing his best to
look out for his constituents,” but he said it would be a
slippery slope if the final language made an exception to benefit
the newly elected Republican.

“Certainly, if you go to carving out one, who are you going to
leave out? Why isn’t everyone else entitled to it?” Chambliss
said. “That was the issue with health care and very well could be
an issue here — I don’t know.”